Health tips for rainy season in Nigeria

The rainy
season in Nigeria is a period that runs from March to October every year. It is
been characterised by large amount of rainfall as compared to the remaining
months of the year. The remaining months (i.e. from November to February is
known as the "dry season". Apart from the large amount of rainfall
that is been experienced during this period, the rainy season is notorious for
the large amount of infections and diseases it carries along. So, it should be
a period that all hands should be on deck in order to maintain a healthy life.

The rainy
season in Nigeria had always been a time to say good bye to the harsh heat and
weather condition and rejoice with the cold weather. But despite the
refreshment that the rain brings, there are certain problems that associates
with the season, for example, there is an increased susceptibility to diseases
and infections. Contaminated foods and water is mostly the major culprit that
leads to people falling sick during the rainy season.

Some of the sicknesses
experienced during the rainy season in Nigeria include Malaria, Typhoid,
Cholera, etc. But the good news is that, most of these infections are easily
avoidable. In this post, i shall be giving out some expert health tips you can
follow to stay healthy and avoid falling sick during rainy seasons in Nigeria.
Read on!

5 healthy tips to avoid falling sick
during rainy seasons in Nigeria

1. Eat freshly prepared, home cooked
meals

The best way
to avoid getting any kind of stomach contamination is by engaging in constant
eating of home cooked meals. The reason is because you will ensure that proper
hygienic precautions are maintained and you will guarantee that they are well
cooked. There is no judgement on the quality of water or vegetables used
(because you did a proper check on that) which makes it easy for you to enjoy
your meal without the possibility of falling sick.

2. Avoid eating foods from the road
side stalls

I guess by
now you might have discovered that the hygiene of street foods, especially during
the rainy season is not something to write home about. It is quite
questionable. Just because they might want to save money and maintain quantity,
the food vendors might compromise on the quality of ingredients used in
preparing the foods. Also, eating foods that has been exposed to the
contaminated air for a long period of time or prepared with contaminated water
can be very dangerous to your health. It can eventually lead to more serious
disease such as Typhoid.

3. Wash your fruits and vegetables thoroughly

During the
rainy season, there are possibilities that the fruits and vegetables you buy
from the market may have more contaminants on them than usual. Therefore, it is
important that you always wash them thoroughly before consumption or used in preparing
meals. The rainy season also records an increase in the number of worms that
resides in these vegetables, especially green leafy ones. Washing them
thoroughly can assist you in getting rid of these worms and avoid diseases in
general.

4. Stick to seasonal foods

Like you all
know, in Nigeria we have two major seasons; the "rainy season" and
the "dry season" and some particular crops are readily available in
each of the seasons. Sticking to seasonal foods that are available during the
rainy season will keep you healthy because other fruits and vegetables may not
be freshly available. As a result of some external factors such as high
moisture levels, sometimes fruits and vegetables can rot if not properly
stored. To avoid risking your health, it is best you stick to seasonal foods.

5. Constantly boil your drinking or
cooking water

Some harmful
bacteria tends to reside in water, and they can be highly detrimental to your
health. Boiling the water you use can be of help because they kill the germs
present inside. This act reduces your chance of acquiring water-borne diseases
that are very common during the rainy season. Apart from killing the bacteria
present, drinking boiled water has several health benefits such as getting rid
of the toxins in your body and it also improves digestion.